Western Australia abandons shark cull

The state of Western Australia is abandoning a controversial shark-culling programme, but has also gained the right to deploy deadly baited lines for animals that pose an “imminent threat”.

The programme, run by the state government off several Western Australian beaches, had been heavily criticized by scientists when it was announced in 2013. It was due to run until 2017, and had caught at least 170 sharks using hooks suspended from drums moored to the sea floor.

In September the state’s own Environmental Protection Agency halted it. State Premier Colin Barnett then applied to the national government for permission to resume it, but today he announced that his government had ended that effort. “We have withdrawn the application after reaching agreement with the Commonwealth which enables us to take immediate action when there is an imminent threat,” said Barnett.

Under an agreement with the national government, Western Australia will be able to kill sharks in future to deal with a shark that has attacked or with one that it thinks poses a threat. Protocols for how this would happen are now in development.

This apparent concession from the national government has drawn some concern from those celebrating the end of the cull.

“I remain concerned that drum lines could be used in some instances as part of emergency measures and particularly that this could occur without Federal approval,” said Rachel Siewert, the marine spokeswoman for the Australian Greens, in a statement.

The Western Australia cull is also drawing renewed attention to the longstanding cull in Queensland, which continues unabated.

The views, opinions and positions expressed by these authors and blogs are theirs and do not necessarily represent that of the Bioethics Research Library and Kennedy Institute of Ethics or Georgetown University.